Examining table



Dec. 30, 1941.

A. DEMCAK EXAMINING TABLE Original Filed Aug 28, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet l frzz/erzzf'ar Q'ndreza .Demccz/ EXAMINING TABLE Original Filed Aug. 28, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 f-z ve rzzn- (ZncZ'reza flemc cz/ a. .ZZW' Q 1941- A. DEMCAK 2,267,973

EXAMINING TABLE Original Filed Aug. 28, 1937 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 m ii i a E i Q i s 1i i I I m fizz/ezzzrx Patented Dec. 30, 1941 EXAMINI'N G TABLE Andrew Demcak, Two Rivers, Wis, assignor to Hamilton Manufacturing Company, Two Rivers, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application August 28, 1937, Serial No. 161,429 Renewed April 17, 1940 4 Claims. (01. 311-10) This invention relates to examining tables or the like, more particularly for the use of physicians and surgeons in their consulting omces. Among other objects the invention aims to provide an improved and simplified structure of this type. One aspect of the invention contemplates the mounting of a paper supply roll on the under side of the padded adjustable rest member of the table, carried directly by the rest member, so that a web of constantly fresh paper or the like may be drawn over the rest member for sanitary purposes in any adjusted position of the rest member, while at the same time a portion of the weight of such member is counterbalanced so as to facilitate ready and easy ad- .iustment thereof.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent and the invention will be readily understood by reference to the following description, taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a table embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a cross-section taken on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged plan section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and

Figure 4 is a similarly enlarged vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Referring in detail to the illustrative embodiment shown in the drawings, the improved table includes the base I resting on the legs II which may be made of wood suitably ornamented. The base i0 is of hollow formation for purposes of lightness and economy, and also for housing operative parts later described.

The base l0 provides a support at table height for the rest members I2 and I3, which are superimposed on the base and may be constructed similarly thereto, these rest members, however, being padded on their upper surfaces as at It for the comfort of a patient reclining thereon. In this instance the rest member i3 is fixedly secured to the base whereas the rest member I2 is pivoted, as here shown, to the rest member 13 as at pivot point 15 to be swung toward and from the base to adapt itself to variations in the position of the patient desired by the examining physician. The pivot point !5 is here shown formed by aligned mating hinge lugs on hinge plates IB and I! carried respectively by the rest members i2 and i3.

In accordance with the present invention, the rest member i2 is upwardly enlarged to form on its under side a chamber i2a at its outer or free end, the upper surface of which provides an elevated head rest l8 for the head of the patient. This enlarged portion I2a of the rest member also advantageously provides a hollow inwardly decreasingly tapering housing chamber for a paper supply roll l9. As indicated by Fig. 4, a web of paper 20 may be drawn from the supply roll l9 up and over the outer end of the rest member i2 to be superimposed thereon as at 2|, affording a sanitary covering for the central portion of the rest member l2 with which the head of the patient contacts. When a new patient is to be examined, a portion 2i of the web 20 may be cut or torn off and a new length thereof drawn over the rest member, thus avoiding the carrying of contamination say from the hair of one patient to another, and contributing to the comfort of the patient.

Mechanism for replaceably mounting the supply roll l9 comprises a bail member 22 which is pivoted as at 23 upon opposite inside faces of the side walls 24 of the rest member 2, pivot plates 25 being carried by those walls for this purpose. The bail 22 is constricted at its free end as at 26 to suit the length of the paper supply roll shaft 21, the ends of which are received in notches 28 in the bail. When the supply roll is thus placed in position, the rest member l2 being elevated, for example, as shown in broken lines in Fig. 1 for this purpose, the bail is then swung upwardly into the chamber in and into alignment with a pair of brackets 29 carried by the inside face of the end wall 30 of the rest member l2. These brackets 29 have downwardly facing recesses 3| therein which register with the recesses 28 in the bail, and together receive the paper supply roll shaft 21, jointly forming a bearing therefor. To fix the bail in this position, a pair of keepers 32 pivoted to the brackets 29 are rotated from dotted line position as shown in Fig. 4 in which position they permit the bail 22 to be swung into aligned position with the brackets, to full line position shown in Fig. 4, in which aligned position they lock the bail thereto by ofiset portions 33 of the keepers which support the bail.

Thus constructed, the rest member I2 is of considerable weight and would be onerous to raise or lower, especially with a patient reclining thereon, and accordingly I have provided, fol-v lowing my invention, force applying, means on the opposite side of the pivot point Hi from the rest member, which in this instance is in the form of a counterbalancing means, such as the expansion coil spring 34, which counterbalances a substantial part but not all of the-weight of the rest member l2, say about four-fifths of the unloaded weight of the rest member. The spring 34 is shown anchored at one end 35 to the base III interiorly centrally thereof, the lower wall 38 of the base being apertured at 31 to pass this end of the spring therethrough. In this aperture, mounted as by brackets 38 secured by bolts 39 respectively to the underside of the wall 35, is the trunnion bolt 40 having a diametrical hole 4| therethrough through which the end 35 of the spring passes and is secured as by a wing-nut 42, the end 35 being threaded as at 43 to have the wing-nut screwed thereon. The other or free end 44 of the spring is secured to a lever arm 45 carried centrally by the underside of the rest member i2. This lever arm is rigidly secured to the rest member by having its end on one side of the pivot point i5 clamped to the underside of the rest member by'a channel bar 46, the lateral flanges 41 of which are secured to the rest member by bolts 48 passing therethrough, a bolt plate 49 being inserted between the heads of the bolts and the rest member for strength and construction. As clearly shown in the drawings,

these bolts and bolt plate are underneath and concealed by the padding H for the rest member i2. Rivets 50 fix the lever arm against movement in the channel bar. The free end of this lever arm to which the spring 34 is attached thus extends to the opposite side of the pivot point l5 and by means of the wing-nut 42 the spring may be expanded suitably to apply the appropriate and desired leverage force upon the rest member l2.

Thus in spite of the extra weight carried by the rest member l2, this may be readily swung to' various angular positions, one: of which, for example, is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1 as indicated by the numeral 5!. The rest member may be raised by a slight lifting action manually applied to the outer end thereof, the remainder of the weight being carried by the spring. The numeral 52 indicates the-position of the free end of the lever arm 45 and spring at the limit of angular movement of the rest member.

It is preferred that the spring 34 carry only a portion of the weight of the rest member as it is desirable that the rest member tend to assume a horizontal position when it is not desired that it be elevated. It is necessary therefore to provide auxiliary means for maintaining the rest member in selected angular positions, and simple and convenient expedients for this purpose comprise in this instance the support rods 53 of which there may be one at each side of the table concealed therein, as best shown in Fig. 2, and passing through slots 54 and 55 in the upper and lower walls 56 and 36 respectively of the base. At their upper ends the support rods 53 are pivoted at 51 to brackets 58 carried by the underside of the rest member l2.

Intermedially of their lengths and within their base In the support rods each pass through a perforation 59 in a. friction block 6 0, each of which is keyed to a rock shaft 6| adjacent the ends thereof within the base Hi, the rock shaft 6| being supported by brackets 62 depending from the upper I downwardly to lower the rest member i2. Except when so actuated by one of the handles 64, the

friction blocks are canted downwardly by the acence to this type of auxiliary supporting means. Upward movement of the support rods to elevate the rest member is permitted at any time with or without actuating the handles 64, since the rods will raise the friction blocks against the action of the springs 65, to axially align the support rods and perforations in the friction blocks.

It will be noted that the side walls 24, which are substantially vertically aligned with the side walls 63 respectively, taper in the direction from the head toward the foot of the rest member 12 to provide the elevated head rest merging gradually into themain body of the rest member. The paper supply roll mounting means advantageously moves with the rest member I! in the movement of the latter toward and away from the base or support In.

Rubber bumpers 68 on the underside of the rest member may contact the support l0 when the member is in lowermost position thereon.

So constructed and arranged, the rest member with its combination paper supply roll chamber and head rest is at all times wholly within the vertical projection of the base or support l0, and both the paper supply roll and the spring for counterbalancing the rest member are normally concealed from view within the rest member and the cabinet support respectively.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A combination head rest and paper supply device for a physicians examining table embodying a support and a rest member pivotedthereon for receiving a patient in reclining position, said combination device including a hollow upwardly enlarged portion of said rest member at the outer end thereof arranged to provide both a chamber on the underside of the rest member and an elevated head rest on the upper side thereof, said portion being at all times within the vertical projection 'of the support, a bail pivoted in said chamber and swingable from a position within the chamber to a position exteriorly thereof when said rest member is elevated, and a keeper within the chamber releasably engaging said bail to retain it in fixed position relatively to the rest member, said chamber being adapted to receive a paper supply roll rotatably carried by said ball.

2. In a physicians examining table or the like comprising a cabinet support and a rest member pivoted thereon forreceiving a patient in reclining position, the combination including an upwardly recessed hollow portion of said rest member providing both a chamber on and opening into the under side of the rest member and an exteriorly padded head rest on the upper side thereof, said upwardly recessed portion being at ,all times within the extended projection of the support, and its exterior merging into the remainder of the rest member, a supply roll for a sanitary paper covering or the like mounted in said chamber, and adjustable means carried by and within the support and associated with the rest member for adjusting the rest member upwardly on its pivot to carry a portion of the weight of the rest member and supply roll on said support through the intermediation of said adjustable means, whereby both the supply roll mounting and the adjustable means are normally concealed within the rest member and cabinet support respectively.

3. In a physician's examining table or the like comprising a cabinet support and a rest member pivoted thereon for receiving a patient in reclining position, the combination including an upwardly enlarged h'ollow portion of said rest member providing both a chamber on the under side of the rest member and an elevated head rest on the upper side thereof, said upwardly enlarged portion being at all times within the vertical projection of the support, a supply roll for a sanitary paper covering or the like mounted in said chamber, and yieldable means carried by and within the support and associated with the rest member urging the rest member upwardly on its pivot to carry a portion of the weight of the rest member and supply roll on said support through the intermediation of said yieldable means, whereby both the supply roll and the yieldable means are.

normally concealed within the rest member and cabinet support respectively.

4. In a physician's examining table or the like, the combination with a table base, of a rest memher for receiving a patient reclining th'ereon, said rest member being'mounted on the base within the vertical projection of the base and normally forming a top for said base, said rest member having tapering side walls substantially vertically aligned with the side walls of the base and having a hollowupwardly enlarged portion at its outer end providing both a chamber on the under side thereof and an elevated head rest on the upper side thereof merging gradually into the main body of said rest member, a paper supply roll mounting means entirely housed within said chamber whereby said chamber is closed by said base when the rest member is lying therealong as a top for the base and a paper supply roll carried on said mounting means is concealed, said rest member being pivotally mounted at its end opposite said head rest for movement toward and away from the base, said paper supply roll mountv ing means moving with the rest member, and 

